THE PRESENT INVENTION relates to a climbing screen support system and a method of assembling the same.
When building a construction having a central structure formed by poured concrete, it is known to use a climbing screen system, which encloses the perimeter of at least a part of the construction. The climbing screen system provides a platform around the perimeter of the construction, to support formwork for use in forming the next level of the construction and to provide a useful work space for construction workers. The system includes a safety screen, to safeguard workers from adverse weather conditions and to ensure a safe working environment. As each floor of the construction is formed, the climbing screen moves up the construction, exposing the previously formed floors beneath.
As the construction is formed, it is known to embed attachment devices on the external surfaces, to which climbing shoes may be attached. The climbing screens are attached to vertical rails which are received in the climbing shoes, thereby retaining the climbing screen securely against the construction but allowing vertical movement of the screen (up or down) the construction.
As the climbing screen moves up the building, so there is a need to remove climbing shoes from further down the construction and reattach them at a point above the climbing screen, such that the rail of the climbing screen will be captured and supported by the reattached shoes as the screen vertically translates up the construction. Due to the weight of the climbing screen and associated structure, and the forces experienced by any wind loading of the climbing screen, the climbing shoes, and the attachments to the construction, must be fairly substantial items in order to withstand such forces. Inevitably, the weight of the climbing shoe is such that dropping the shoe onto workers or public below could risk serious injury or death. When detaching and reattaching climbing shoes at the edge of a construction, and particularly at height, it will be appreciated that there is a danger of the climbing shoe, or a part thereof, falling from the construction on to workers or public below.
Accordingly, there is a need for the ability to safely and reliably mount climbing shoes to a construction with a reduced risk of injury to workers and, indeed, damage to the climbing shoe.
When forming a construction from concrete, unavoidable differences in the construction of each floor may mean that the edges of each respective floor are not entirely in line with one another. Sometimes, the edge of a particular floor may be several centimetres out of alignment with the edge of a neighbouring floor. Accordingly, it will be appreciated that where a climbing shoe is attached directly to an attachment point embedded in the edge of a floor, the climbing shoes would also be out of line. Such an arrangement would not allow the free linear movement of a rail with respect to the climbing shoes, because they are not aligned correctly. Accordingly, there is also a need for a climbing screen support system which may alleviate or overcome the inevitable problems of manufacturing tolerances.